Illinois Law on Uninsured Motorists Fails to Solve the Problem

Illinois has a new law aiming to crack down on people who drive without insurance. The new penalty? Suspend the driver's license for three months.

Who in the world thinks that this will prevent people from driving without insurance? The offenders have already made the choice to drive illegally -- to drive without insurance. What causes anyone to think that those same people will not continue to drive illegally (without insurance and without a license).

The solution has to be more drastic. If Illinois is serious about taking bad drivers or uninsured drivers off the road, then Illinois must take the cars off the road. Get caught driving without a license or get caught twice without insurance (twice only to allow for honest mistakes like lapsed policies), and lose the vehicle.

In Illinois, insurance goes with the vehicle. If the vehicle is insured, as a general rule all drivers are insured (unless the policy has a specific exclusion). As such, if that vehicle is not insured, the owner is the one at fault. We need to take that vehicle from the owner.

It is time to get those uninsured vehicles off the street, and it is time for our friends in Springfield to start passing legislation that will make a difference.